Cleverley On Late Win: "We Kept Believing"

Tom Cleverley praised his Hornets side for battling right to the end to secure today’s dramatic late win over Portsmouth.

Rocco Vata struck deep into added time in the second half after Edo Kayembe’s penalty had cancelled out Pompey’s early opener.

The Golden Boys were fully deserving of their win but it looked like the three points would not arrive before Vata’s last-gasp heroics.

“They kept their cool,” Cleverley said of his players. 

“In a really tough environment, they kept their heads.

“We didn’t start getting desperate, we kept believing we could create the chances to win the game.

“To show the resilience, patience, calmness, whatever we want to call it, to go on to win the game from there, it’s a massive credit to the players.”

Watford are now unbeaten at Vicarage Road in 17 matches in all competitions and have moved into the final Sky Bet Championship play-off spot.

“Three things that have created this home run are heart and desire from the players, quality, and that never-say-die attitude,” Cleverley added. “It keeps us doing really well at our place.

“We’ve certainly got something special here at our home ground.

“These are really special moments that you can really connect with your fanbase with and we’re in the top six, which is where we want to be.”

Nineteen-year-old winger Vata now has two goals and two assists from his last three games, and has really announced himself to Hornets supporters.

“I said it about [Kwadwo] Baah earlier in the season, to not expect too much, too soon, from one of our highly-talented youngsters, and the same goes with Rocco,” Cleverley said.

“But we have an exciting prospect on our hands and he’s really improving.

“He is desperate to score goals.

“He’s an animal in and around the box and it’s no fluke he’s got two big goals for us.”

The victory again saw the Hornets bounce back from a disappointment after the 2-1 defeat at Burnley last time out.

“It shows how healthy our environment and culture is,” Cleverley said.

“We can deal with these setbacks on the chin and then come out with a little bit more added pressure on our home games, and deal with that on broad shoulders.”

The busy festive schedule will now continue with the visit of Cardiff City on Sunday (December 29, 3pm KO) and Cleverley added: “I'll probably celebrate in my lounge for 10 minutes when I get home, then start watching Cardiff's game from today.”